Annual report | January 2025
Allianz Risk Barometer
Identifying the major business risks for 2025
The most important corporate concerns for the year ahead, as ranked by 3,700+ risk management experts from more than 100 countries and territories.
Top global risks overview
Cyber, business interruption and natural catastrophes are the risks of most concern for businesses globally in the Allianz Risk Barometer 2025. In an increasingly volatile and interconnected risk landscape, companies and their insurance partners must take a holistic view of risk and, continually work to invest in and build resilience, even if the short-term nature of business decisions, world events, and the cost-of-living crisis makes this more challenging than ever.
The Allianz Risk Barometer tracks the most important corporate concerns for the year ahead, as voted for by a record 3,778 risk management experts from 106 countries and territories.
With a larger proportion of responses than ever before, cyber incidents (38% of responses, a record 7% points ahead) consolidates its position as the most important risk; while notably, the risk impact of new technologies and developments in artificial intelligence (AI) is a new entrant in the top 10 global risks at #10. Closely interlinked to cyber, business interruption is ranked #2 (31%), just ahead of another related risk, natural catastrophes at #3 (29%).
Climate change is another standout result in 2025. It is the biggest mover in the top 10 risks globally, climbing two places to #5 (19%), achieving its highest ever position in the 14 years of the survey. Businesses face many challenges. As climate- and nature-related risks continue to rise, the financial implications will become increasingly pronounced, whether it concerns managing climate change transition risk, mounting costs from regulatory compliance on disclosing physical climate risks or operational disruptions caused by more extreme weather events and ecosystem degradation.
Reflecting regulatory developments for sustainability and emerging technologies, changes in legislation and regulation (25%) also drew a bigger response this year, retaining #4 globally.
Watch: What keeps business leaders up at night?
The video highlights the top 10 global business risks for 2025.
Top risks are increasingly complex and interdependent
Amid high levels of geopolitical and economic uncertainty, and a shifting risk environment, the top three risks of cyber, business interruption, and natural catastrophes, but also many of the other perils ranked in the top 10, are particularly complex, unpredictable and interdependent.
“What stands out in this year’s Allianz Risk Barometer is the interconnectivity of the top risks. A change in one – or indeed a mitigating action – might have a knock-on effect on another, and another. Climate change, emerging technology, regulation and geopolitical risks are increasingly intertwined, resulting in a complex network of cause and effect,” says Michael Bruch, Global Head of Risk Advisory Services, Allianz Commercial.
In today's volatile and interconnected risk environment, businesses need to adopt a holistic approach to risk management and consistently strive to enhance their resilience, Bruch adds.
“Extreme weather events such as the devastating floods seen in Spain last year, increasing geopolitical conflicts, as well as cyber incidents like the CrowdStrike outage, demonstrate the need to continue building greater resilience. Resilience will be the key topic going forward.
“Humans often have short memories, quickly forgetting past events and maintaining unchanged behaviors. Despite some valuable lessons learned from the pandemic, which led many businesses to adopt resilience measures, I worry that current global events and the cost-of-living crisis might cause resilience to lose its priority. In truth, resilience is more crucial now than ever.”
The top global risks overview continues in thecyber incidents and business interruption risk articles.
The top 10 global business risks for 2025 - including their 2024 ranking
The figures in this infographic represent how often a risk was selected as a percentage of all survey responses from 3,778 respondents.
Click on the bars in the chart for further details
All respondents could select up to three risks per industry, which is why the figures do not add up to 100%.
Source: Allianz Commercial
Source: Allianz Commercial
The most important global business risks for 2025 in focus
Rank 1: Cyber incidents
Cyber incidents such as ransomware attacks, data breaches and IT outages is the top global risk for 2025, marking its fourth consecutive year at the top.
Rank 2: Business interruption
Business interruption (BI) has ranked either #1 or #2 in every Allianz Risk Barometer for the past decade. Its persistence at the top reflects severe supply chain disruption during and after the pandemic.
Rank 3: Natural catastrophes
For the fifth consecutive year, insured losses due to natural catastrophes have surpassed the US$100bn mark. As such, it is no surprise that natural catastrophes remain among the top three concerns in this year’s Allianz Risk Barometer.
Rank 4: Changes in legislation and regulation
Sustainability reporting requirements are high on the agenda in Europe, while in the US there is a risk of a ‘regulatory Wild West’ if grandiose announcements are followed by action, particularly with crypto and AI. Meanwhile, tariffs are looming.
Rank 5: Climate change
This peril achieved its highest-ever position in 2025. Physical damage and business interruption from extreme weather events are the impacts companies fear most, while managing transition risk is the key area of focus looking ahead.
Rank 6: Fire, explosion
Few things can be more destructive than a fire. Not only can one cause costly damage, but it can also interrupt a firm’s operations indefinitely, ensuring it is a perennial top 10 global risk for businesses in the Allianz Risk Barometer.
Rank 7: Macroeconomic developments
Last year, many elections generated attention. In 2025, new governments set the course for the future and the long-term consequences for growth and prosperity will be significant.
Rank 8: Market
developments
Companies are more concerned about such trends for the second year in succession but a stock market correction in 2025 seems unlikely. However, expected tariff walls may impact M&A in the US.
Rank 9: Political risks and violence
This risk drops one position but still ranks as a top five peril in countries such as France, Italy and the UK. The impact of civil unrest is the exposure companies fear most, while smaller firms are increasingly concerned about the disruption such threats can bring.
Rank 10: New technologies
Closely related to cyber risk is the impact of emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), which holds the potential to revolutionize industries. However, these advancements also amplify vulnerabilities, contributing to this risk category's return to the top 10 global concerns for the first time in five years.
Methodology of the Allianz Risk Barometer
The 14th Allianz Risk Barometer incorporates the views of 3,778 respondents from 106 countries and territories. The annual corporate risk survey was conducted among Allianz customers (businesses around the globe), brokers and industry trade organizations. It also surveyed risk consultants, underwriters, senior managers, claims experts, as well as other risk management professionals in the corporate insurance segment of Allianz Commercial and other Allianz entities.
Respondents were questioned during October and November 2024. The survey focused on large, smaller and mid-size companies. Respondents were asked to select the industry about which they were particularly knowledgeable and to name up to three risks they believed to be most important.
Most answers were for large-size companies (>US$500mn annual revenue) [1,747 respondents, 46%]. Mid-size companies ($100mn+ to $500mn revenue) contributed 936 respondents (25%), while smaller enterprises (<$100mn revenue) produced 1,095 respondents (29%). Risk experts from 24 industry sectors were featured.
Ranking changes in the Allianz Risk Barometer are determined by positions year-on-year, not percentages.
3,778 respondents
106 countries and territories
24 industry sectors
Countries and industry sectors need at least 15 respondents to feature in the Allianz Risk Barometer Appendix results document.
Allianz Risk Barometer 2025: Further information
Pictures: Adobe Stock, Shutterstock
Allianz Risk Barometer 2016 to 2025
The most important global business risks in the last 10 years
This graphic shows how perceptions of selected top risks have changed over the past 10 years (according to % of responses). Not all risks that have featured in the annual survey appear in this graphic as risks and categorizations have changed over time. To view the top risks for each year by ranking position see the previous reports.
Click on a year in the timeline to see the development of the risks over time. Click on the bars in the chart for further details.
Source: Allianz Commercial
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